As the 2026-27 NBA season approaches this fall, Bleacher Report released an interesting list, as they ranked the best players by each age. Unexpectedly, there were multiple Houston Rockets players who earned that distinction.
Beginning with the more surprising of the two, Amen Thompson was named as the league's best 23-year-old. Last season, Thompson took a huge jump, playing 79 games and averaging a career-high 18.3 points to go along with 7.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.6 blocks. Although he was snubbed from an All-Defensive selection, Thompson did finish eighth in Defensive Player of Year Award voting. Other notable 23-year-olds that Thompson was selected over include Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero and Charlotte Hornets forward Brandon
Miller.
As readers may have expected, Kevin Durant (age 37) was the other Rockets forward listed, as Alperen Sengun fell short to Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham among players at the age of 24. A season ago, Durant averaged 26 points per game, tying him for 10th in the league. He also averaged 5.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.9 blocks. James Harden, a former MVP in Houston, was the only other 37-year-old in the same realm as Durant, averaging 23.6 points and eight assists between the Clippers and Cavaliers.
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This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Two Rockets forwards receive unique distinction ahead of 2026-27 season
